We Have the Night
by IAmTheStars
Summary: In a world finally free of war, one girl is left broken and empty, while another boy is left rejected and scorned for crimes he never meant to commit. No one is allowed to see her pain while everyone ignores his. They keep up their facades on their own, but after a few unexpected encounters, their carefully constructed charades may just crash and burn.
1. The Promise

**A/N**: Hello! So, I decided to try my hand at a multi-chapter story. I have somewhat of an idea where I want this to go, but my mind seems to constantly be in 50 places at once and ideas keep changing. But somewhat of an idea got me to write a first chapter and that's good enough for me. So here it is! :D

**Disclaimer**: I, unfortunately, do not own Harry Potter. That would be awesome though... Sigh...

_Italics or Underlined_= Flashback/Thoughts

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><p>On the outside, Gwendolyn Storm seemed a very simple girl. She never asked for much, always content with what she had. She never complained and she hardly ever quarreled with others. She even looked simple with her wavy auburn hair and soft pale features. But on the inside, people would find a much more complex person. They would find someone who has felt much pain throughout her life and has many wounds, with some of those wounds more fresh than others.<p>

One of those wounds she was still trying to mend on a late August morning in a small forest clearing that only she knew about. She was on her knees in the grassy middle while studying a beautiful antique ring that was connected to a chain around her neck. The ring was stunning, with one diamond resting in the middle of several smaller ones. And yet, as beautiful as it was, the longer she looked at it, the more forlorn she felt. That ring brought back so many memories, both wonderful and terrible. And at that very moment she was relieving one of the most wonderful and terrible memories of them all. One that was one of the best moments of her life, yet full of broken promises.

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><p><em>A sixth year Gwendolyn, still in her school uniform, was walking through an abandoned corridor of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Well, not really walking. More like stalking, as it was after hours and she could not afford to get caught. She kept stalking until she reached the seventh floor. When she reached her destination, which was seemingly a blank wall, she cautiously looked around before walking past it three times with her eyes closed. A pleasant smile graced her lips when she opened her eyes to find a door that was not there before. She quickly and soundlessly open the door into a cozy, finely furnished room. On the wall to her right was a large comfortable looking bed covered in cream colored sheets and comforter. To her left there was a door that led to a bathroom and a wardrobe. And in front of her was a small sitting area that consisted of a cream love seat and two matching armchairs to go with it. But it wasn't any of the fine décor that caught her attention, for that was nothing new. It was the tall, broad and strangely tense figure standing in front of the lit fireplace. The figure was that of an able bodied young man in slacks and a dress shirt with dark skin and black hair.<em>

_Noticing that he had not heard her entrance, Gwendolyn sneaked past the loveseat and surprised him with a giant yet gentle hug around the waist from behind. "Hello, you." She mumbled into his back with a smile. He jumped, but at the sound of her voice, he visibly calmed. Turning, he warmly embraced her small figure back and pressed his lips to her head. "Hello you." he returned._

_They stayed like that for a few minutes, simply enjoying the feel of each other in their arms. When they eventually made their way to the loveseat still holding each other, they talked of simple things like how their day was, what they did, what teachers they would like to see sacked. While talking about a particularly amusing event that happened during Transfiguration and tracing errant patterns on the bare, dark skin of his arms, Gwendolyn noticed that he only seemed to be half listening. His mind seemed elsewhere._

_She lifted a hand up to his face and turned his head slowly so she can look him in his dark eyes. "Hey," She spoke softly, "Are you okay?"_

_Without giving her an answer, he startled her by pressed his lips to hers in a sudden, passionate kiss. Surprised at first, she quickly recovered by wrapping her arms around her neck and kissing back with just as much enthusiasm. Even though they have kissed hundreds of times before, she could never get rid of the pleasant shock that came with each and every one._

_"Gwen," He breathed when they finally parted, "I know that no one can know of us now, but when this is all over, when this war is over, I promise we won't have to hide anymore."_

_Leaning back, confusion crossed across Gwendolyn's features. This was not the first time she had heard this. "I know." She stated, "Is that whats been bothering you? The hiding?"_

_"Yes... And no." He sounded frustrated. He started pulling away and Gwendolyn already started to feel colder. He prompted her to follow him with a nod of his head. He led her to the middle of the room, grabbing her hand while doing so. He turned to her and getting a good look at his dark skinned face, she could tell that he was battling with himself. Why? She did not yet know._

_Rolling his eyes all of a sudden and muttering a "Ah, what the hell." Letting go of her hand, he dropped to one knee in front of her and pulled out a small black box from his pocket._

_Gwendolyn's heart jumped into her throat when she saw it. Eyes widening, she thought, 'What is he doing? Is he... No...No way... If this is some sick joke-'_

_"I was planing on waiting until the war ended," He said, interrupting her thoughts, "or at least until the end of the year. But after thinking about it, I don't know what will happen. I don't know if Potter will win this for us and I don't know how long I can keep this facade up in front of my family and house. So, I'm just gonna do it now." Pausing for a deep breath, he continued, "Gwendolyn, June Storm, As unexpected as it was, I fell in love with you. I fell in love with you and will continue to love you for as long as I am alive. And I know if I don't do this now and die knowing I never did, then I would die a very regretful man."_

_"...Gwen, if we get through this, will you marry me?"_

_Shock. Disbelief. Confusion. All of those emotions were reeling through her. Each one bringing on another wave of doubt that she was still in reality. She even pinched herself while he watched in amusement. Once she confirmed that this indeed was real, all sorts of new feelings washed over her. Relief, elation, happiness, and as cheesy as it sounds, love. It hit her like a giant rock to the head and nearly knocked her over. 'This is really happening.' Noticing the concerned look across her loves face, she realized that she must have been thinking longer than she thought. Reminding herself how to breathe, let alone speak, she managed to strangle out a barely audible, "...Yeah."_

_Feeling like an idiot and rolling her eyes after her wimpy reply, she tried again. "Yeah. Yes, Of course I'll marry you!" Nearly breaking out into a delighted yell, she started bouncing of her feet while covering her mouth with her right hand._

_Then the giggles came. And with her, once the giggles came, they were hard to get rid of. Catching on to her contagious bout of happiness, he started laughing with her as he slipped a perfectly fitted ring onto her left hand. In all her elation and confusion, she didn't even bother to look at the ring and once she saw how perfect it was, she started to laugh even harder. 'I'm engaged... To be married!' The thoughts forced happy tears into her eyes ad she was wondering if she was going insane from all the strong emotion flowing through her.. If she was, she didn't care. And as it seemed, neither did he as he all of a sudden picked her up in his arms and spun her around with a joyous yell. When he got dizzy, he stopped and she saw that there were tears in his dark eyes also. She kissed them off his cheeks, one by one, before finally making her way to his lips with great fervor. Responding with equal fervency, he kissed her back while picking her up bridal style and making their way over to the bed._

_Caught up so deeply into her feelings of of happiness with his strong body on top of hers, she almost missed the little voice of reason in her head telling her that she was missing something. Thinking back to what he said, she was once again hit with another giant rock of reason._

_"Wait a second." Her breathless voice thankfully found its way to his ears._

_"Do I have to?" He moaned as his lips made their way to her neck. Before she could get pulled too far in, she forcefully grabbed his head so his eyes could meet hers._

_"Yes." She replied sternly. Complying, Albeit a bit reluctantly, he slowly got up off her sat himself at the edge of the bed. "You said something about dying," she started in a small voice, sitting up to meet him, "Did you really mean it? Do you think that is really a possibility?" The thought scared her immensely and she almost didn't want to hear the answer, but she had to know._

_Grabbing her shoulders gently, he replied,"I don't know whats going to happen Gwen. This is a war. It's unpredictable and unsafe. Especially for us. Death Eaters are everywhere where I come from, and if they find that I'm with a Gryffindor of all people, I wouldn't be likely to make it out alive."_

_"Stop." She couldn't hear anymore and more tears were making their way to her eyes. It was hurting her inside, knowing what could happen to him because of her. "We shouldn't do this. I don't want you getting killed because of me. We should st-"_

_"Don't you dare say stop." He interrupted forcefully while tightening his grip on her shoulders. "If we stop I might as well be dead. You are the only thing that makes me truly happy and I am willing to risk my life to make sure I don't loose it."_

_Brows making their way to the middle of her forehead, she responded quickly with, "But what if I loose you? What if you make me happy? What am I supposed to do without you?"_

_"Go back to doing whatever it was you were doing before I came and pulled into this dangerous life of secrecy." He shot back._

_"No." Her voice turned hard. "Whatever my life was before you came into it, its gone now. I can't go back to being that depressed girl with an ugly scar who blamed herself for every bad thing happening in her life. Don't you see? Your the only one who could heal me! Not even my best friend or my father could do that! I am nothing without you!" The tears were freely falling down her face now and her voice started trembling. He brought his palms to her face and wiped away the tears with the pads of his thumbs. Her hands grabbed his and held them there, savoring the feeling of his soft dark skin on her own. Taking a deep breath, she continued in a much softer tone."You're right about not knowing what will happen. And I know how dangerous our secret is. Just promise me you will do everything you can to stay alive. Promise you won't leave me."_

_Kissing her in between the eyes he whispered, "I Promise."_

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><p>But he didn't keep his promise.<p>

He broke it.

He broke it on that cursed night just two and a half months prior. He broke it when he jumped in front of her when a stray killing curse came her way.

Gwendolyn couldn't keep the tears out of her eyes any longer and were now spilling down her cheeks. She sobbed for him, wanted nothing more that to take his place. Bringing the ring to her lips she kissed it while softly saying in a broken voice, "Why? Why did you break your promise? Why did you leave me?"

"Why Blaise, Why?"

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><p><strong>AN: **So, what do you think? Love it? Hate It? In between? Should I continue? Please leave a review and let me know!


	2. Of Faults and Guilt

A/N: Hey everyone. I finally got the guts to post another chapter! Took me long enough right? :) But I'm gonna do it! A big inspiration for these past two chapters was one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite artists, "Cry" by Kelly Clarkson. I think it described Gwen's feelings regarding Blaise and her mother perfectly and the secrets she has to keep. So if you haven't heard it, youtube it or something cause its a great, emotional song.

And I wanted to thank all of you who added my story to their story alerts and gave my story a chance. :) And a special shout out to Marine69 for all of your reviews. They have helped me so much and I really appreciate it!

So here it is! :D

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><p>Feeling confused, Gwendolyn woke up in a place that was not her bedroom. She woke up on her back, seeing a clear sky and the tops of trees. <em>"Where am I?" <em>Then it dawned on her, she was in her meadow. She must have fallen asleep while crying. Remembering what had caused her tears, she opened up her clenched fist and saw the ring. The ring that brought her so much grief, yet she couldn't bare to part with.

She thought about the reasons that caused her meltdown while still lying on her back and looking up at the blue, late afternoon sky. She had been doing so well. She kept her emotions in check and was careful not to think about anything that had to do with _him. _Let alone mention him around her father who didn't even know that they knew each other. The only other person who had somewhat of an idea of what was going on between them was her best friend, Clara. And she could only gather enough information to assume that Gwen had a secret boyfriend.

In the end, Gwen decided that it was anxiety. She did not want to go back to Hogwarts. Not so soon after his death and so many other tragedies. She didn't want to face the memories, the unspoken words, and the pain. She didn't want to face the face the fact that she would never see him ever again. After all, he was her first for a lot of things. He was her first true love and her first dark secret. He was the first boy that she ever shed a tear for. Hell, he was the first boy who she ever let see her naked. But there would be no more firsts with him. Because he was gone.

Trying to prevent the tears from coming back, she sat up quickly and took deep breaths to clear her head. Tucking the ring back into her shirt and noticing the time on her watch she quickly got up and started the twenty minute walk home down her secret trail. It was three thirty and her father gets home from work at five. She could of easily apparated but thought that a walk would help her put her mind back in check. Not too long after she left, she walked into the the backyard of a very cozy looking home. It was not huge but not really small either, and was made of gray stone and had red trim and had a balcony on the both sides. It looked like it could fit a family of six, which it was originally intended for, but now only housed two.

Gwendolyn entered the back door into a kitchen with warm yellow walls, cherry wood cabinets, and light granite counter tops and island. She walked straight into a similarly colored hallway and entered the small door on her left. A bathroom. It was a half bathroom with only a toilet and a sink across from it with blue walls and a golden trimmed mirror above it.

"Oh, Merlin." Were the first words she said when she saw her self. Looking at her reflection, Gwen noticed how bad she really looked. Her pale face was red and puffy from the crying and sleeping. Her loose white t- shirt and jeans were wrinkled and her auburn hair was a knotted mess. But the thing that struck her the most were her eyes. Her strange eyes that could never decide whether they wanted to be ice blue or deep green, were usually the only feature she really liked about her self. But these past few weeks, more so today than any other, they did not have that happy, shy gleam. Today, they looked empty, dull, and reserved. Gwen shook her head and wondered how she could hide the mess that she had truly turned into this past summer from her father. Henry Storm could read her like a book. She knew that he had suspicions about her change and had asked her about on occasion, but she just brushed him off, telling him that it had been a hard school year- which was partially true- and was getting used to the change. He just didn't know that for a short time of that year, she was engaged to be married to a boyfriend that he didn't even know about. And that he had left her, leaving her even more broken than she was before.

After splashing water onto her face and rinsing her irritated eyes, she then made her way down the hall to the front of the house and made her way up the stairs to her right. Turning right at the top she walked to the last bedroom on the left and entered.

Gwen's bedroom was quaint and simple, just like her. The walls were a warm cocoa brown and on her right, facing her, was her full bed with a white headboard and comforters. On either side of it was a small bedside table with matching lamps and an assortment of baubles and trinkets, Same as the white dresser on the wall to the right of them, which Gwendolyn walked over to and pulled out a some night shorts, another white t- shirt, and some undergarments and placed them on top. She then proceeded to her green and gold bathroom across the hall and took a what she hoped to be a soothing shower. She took a longer shower than usual, around thirty minutes. She couldn't help and let out a few more stressful tears and last minute panicked breaths before finally emerging from the steamy shower and back to her room. After drying her self off she walked over to her wardrobe on the wall that faces the back yard and exchanged her towel for a light blue robe that reached her knees and then collapsing onto her bed. She still felt tired and wanted nothing more than to go back into a blissful sleep. Not the kind she has been having lately. The dreams and uneasiness of it has taken a toll on her and would be a pain during the school year. _"Speaking of school..._" She regretfully heaved her self off her bed with a sigh and reached under her bed to grabbed her trunk and pull it on top. Opening it to that it was almost completely empty except for a few old school books and too small robes. She emptied it out and replaced it with the new supplies that she acquired earlier in the week during a trip to Diagon Alley. Working quick and swallowing down the anxiety she felt at the thought of school, she was able to get packed for the year in under ten minutes. _"A new record." _She thought with a smile on her face. A beep from her watch on the dresser she noticed that it was almost five.

"Crap!" Ripping off her robe and replacing it with her pj's and adding on some knee high socks, she then ran down the stairs to the kitchen while throwing her hair into a messy bun. Opening the refrigerator, she scanned over the food and thought about what to make. "What to make, what to make...Aha!" Chicken enchiladas. Her dad's favorite.

Busying her self with chopping up vegetables and frying chicken and humming a tuneless song she has them wrapped up and in the oven in fifteen minutes. Feeling satisfied with her self she turned around and walked into... Someone elses chest.

"Oh my god!" Frantically looking for a weapon and cursing her self for leaving her wand upstairs, Gwen tripped over her own feet and fell with a yell. All the while the newcomer started to burst into laughter. A very familiar laughter. "DAD? Merlin! You scared the crap out of me!" She yelled from the floor while giving him a glare. Her glare only seemed to make him laugh harder and she couldn't help but crack a small smile at his contagious enthusiasm. Her father was a handsome man with his deep chestnut hair and matching eyes that sparkled when she was happy.

"I'm sorry sweetheart, I couldn't help my self." He helped her up and wrapped his arms around her. Pulling away after a moment he sniffed the air. "Do I smell-"

"Your favorite? Yes you do." She replied with a small smile on her face. "I thought it would be fitting for our last dinner of the summer together."

"Ah, you are an angel." He said dramatically with a swift kiss to her forehead. "You all packed?" He asked, making his way to small table while doing so. "Don't want you to be late on your first day of school. Again."

Gwen rolled her eyes in response. Of course he had to bring up the fact that she was almost always late to everything. Besides her clumsiness, that was one of her greatest flaws. "Yes, I am thank you very much. And your just as bad you know." She reminded him while peeking in the oven to see if the cheese melted. "It must be a genetic thing. They look about ready." After she pulled the enchiladas out, he helped her in making a salad while they cooled. They set up the table and in no time were eating the last meal together for a while.

"You excited for school?" Henry asked in between bites.

"Yep." Gwen tried to reply convincingly, even adding a smile at the end. But the smile must of looked strained because Henry gave her that I-don't-believe-you-look. Gwen readied herself for that annoying lecture he always gave her when this happened. It always got on her nerves.

"Gwennie," He used her nickname, the one only he is allowed to use. "What's the matter? You used to love Hogwarts. It made you happier. I don't underst-"

"I'm just scared." She snapped, cutting in. Taking a deep breath, she continued, "A lot of awful things happened last year and they scared me. The war and the battle took away a lot of things and I am just having a hard time getting over it." She answered with a half truth instead of just saying the usual 'I'm fine.' that they both know is a lie. Better to stick with the truth.

Grabbing her hand from a cross the table, he said gently, "You don't have to go back. You can finish your education here if you can-"

"No." She interrupted again. "If I don't go back, then I may never get over it. I can do this. I'll be okay" She didn't know then if those words were true, but she knew it would ease her fathers mind. And she knew it's what _he_ would have wanted her to do. She owed him at least that much.

"Okay." Her father agreed. "How was your day today?" "_Of all the subject changes he could have chosen from..." _

"It was good. Got packed, read a little bit, cleaned, went for a walk," _"Had a meltdown..."_ "Oh, and Clara is bringing Kai to the train station with her tomorrow, so we don't have to worry about bringing him."

"Where has he been lately? I haven't seen him for a few days."

"I had him fly a big birthday package to her the other day. I figured he would be tired so I asked her to watch him 'till school started."

"Ah, that right. She seventeen now?" Gwen nodded, "Has she got her apparation license?"

"Yep."

"You girls have grown up so much." He mentioned proudly. Clara Connor was her closest friend and she knew her dad considered Clara his second daughter. Their fathers worked close together as aurors and Maxwell Connor was like an uncle to her. As was his wife, Jenna Connor like an aunt. The thought of her other family brought a smile to her face. "Pretty soon you will both be graduating and will have careers... It's weird."

"Thanks Dad." Gwen said sarcastically. "Its always nice to know that my father thinks I'm weird."

"Well you are weird," He replied, "But it's a good weird. Only you can have it." He added quickly with a smile.

"Thank you." She said sincerely this time. She got up, grabbing her plate and walking over to his side of the table first, kissed him on top of his head and added, "You're weird too." Then making her way to the sink, rinsed them and placed them in. "Can you clean them? I left my wand upstairs." She asked.

"Sure." He replied Grabbing his wand from his work robes, he swished it towards the sink, and they started to clean them selves.

"I'm going to get ready for bed." She called over her shoulder.

"Okay." She heard him call back.

Back in her room, Gwen double checked to see if she had everything for the next day and tided up her room a little bit. While Picking up a stray piece of parchment under the bedside table on the left side of her bed, She took notice of the flowers painted on the wall. They only went halfway across the wall and the one next to it. Her and her mother never got the chance to finish their project. Sighing at the memory she picked up the picture of three people from the table. It was of a nine year old her and her father, and there was someone else there, a young woman who Gwen considered a prettier version of her self. Her mother. Rosie Storm. Bringing the photograph to her lips, she kissed it. "I miss you Mommy." Setting the photo back down, Gwen walked over to her wardrobe, grabbed an extra quilt and made her way to her balcony. Stepping onto her small balcony, she lit her twinkling lights that wound around the railings and settled herself into the small, comfy armchair. She sat there, gazing at the stars and the glowing lightning bugs below and thought. She thought about school, Clara, her father, but mostly about her mother. The thought of her always brought on many questions. Is she watching over her now? Is she proud? Disappointed? Is she ashamed of all the secrets that she has kept?

"I wish you were here." She sighed.

"Did you say something?"

The voice pulled Gwen out of her reverie ans startled her. Looking to her left, she saw Henry standing on his own small balcony, now in just pajama bottoms and a robe.

"Just thinking out loud." She responded quietly.

"About what?"

It didn't bother her that he was asking her such personal questions. They were as close as any father and daughter could get and she knew he would respect her if she decided not to tell. Sometimes she felt bad about it, like she was taking him for granted by not telling him everything. Pushing her guilt away, she answered honestly with, "Mom."

"Ahhhh, Rosie," He paused for a moment, "You look just like her, you know." Gwen just nodded. "You act just like her too. She was weird." He continued with a slight chuckle, reverting back to their earlier discussion.

This conversation was making her feel even more guilty and she started to sink more into her chair, hoping it would swallow her.

"It wasn't your fault, you know." He added in a concerned voice. "Her death was an accident. You hear me?"

"I hear you." She said, just loud enough for him to hear._"But I don't believe you..."_ "I'm going to bed. Big day tomorrow." She said in fake enthusiasm and a fake smile on her face. Getting up she started to make her way to the double doors they led to her room.

"I love you." He said quickly before she could leave. Looking over to him, she could see that he had had one hand reaching towards her, as if he could close the thirty feet gap between them and take hold of her hand.

'I love you too." She said back quietly while copying the movement. They stood there for a moment, just looking at each other, before quietly saying their good nights and making their way to their rooms. Dropping the quilt on the floor, she made straight to her bed and grabbing her wand from the bedside table, turned off the lights.

In the dark Gwen could feel her other four senses sharpen from the sight deprivation. She could hear the crickets from the forest outside and could feel the breeze coming from the open doors of her balcony. But most of all, she could feel the treacherous tears make their way down her face at the thought of her mother. _"It was my fault..." _ She was the reason they walked to the park that day. She was the reason they were crossing the road and were struck by that car. She should have seen it coming while running ahead of her mother into the seemingly empty street. She should have stopped her mother from shielding her from the car turning the corner. Her mother may have still been alive if she had. And she would be gone. That's what should have happened. But it didn't. She was still here.

"It was all my fault..."

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><p>How was it? Good? Awful? Please, please, please review! I don't want to sound nagging or anything, but I need your peoples opinion! Were there any mistakes? There probably is because editing is a bitch, so please let me know! Constructive criticism is awesome! :)<p>

Oh, and BTW, I have a Photobucket, so you can go there to see how I imagine present and future characters to look and the settings in which they live. So check that out! The like is on my profile. Thank you for reading! :D


	3. Goodbyes

**A/N:** Hey guys. I am sooooooo sorry for the delay of this chapter. Life became pretty hectic then I got a horrible case of the dreaded writers block. I'm sure more than a few of you can understand. But I'm back!

I'm not really excited about this chapter and I'm not really sure how I feel about it, but decided to upload it anyway and see how you guys feel about it. :) So let me know! And I am sorry if this story seems slow. This chapter was originally longer, but I decided to cut it in half because I didn't like where the original draft ended. But I'm glad I did. :)

**Disclaimer:** Of course I don'y own Harry Potter!

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><p>"<em>Mummy please!"<em>

"_Alright, Alright!" Rosie storm exclaimed at her very distressed daughter. "Just let me finish your sandwich and we'll pack it to go. Goodness, you are persistent today. Its just a park." She added under her breath._

"_Yes!"_

_A few minutes later, little Gwen was just finishing up tying her shoes when her mother walked into the room with a picnic basket in tow. "Remember, two bunny ears, then twist and pull." She reminded Gwen as she examined her handy work. The knots were messy but they would stay. _

"_I know mom." Gwen drawled out with a dramatic roll of her eyes. It wasn't her her fault that she hadn't learned to tie her shoes until she was nine. She liked slip-on's okay? _

"_Fine" Rosie relented with a chuckle. "Hey Hun!" She called up the stairs._

"_Yeah?" She heard her husband call back._

"_Me and Gwen are going to take a quick trip to the park. You wanna Join?"_

"_Can't, Sorry. I had to bring some work home with me. You two have your fun."_

"_Okay." Rosie sighed. "I love you!"_

"_Love you girls too!" Henry laughed down the stairs._

"_Bye Daddy!" Gwen yelled out as her mother ushered her out the door. _

_As they walked the short distance to the park Gwen wore a thoughtful face. _

"_Mom?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Dad has magic." Rosie nodded for her to continue. "But you don't. How did you two meet?"_

_Rosie laughed at the memory. "Your father was a scoundrel when he was younger. He would often come to the restaurant I worked at and use a spell to cause a mysterious draft to enter the area and make all of the waitresses skirts fly up. Of course I caught him doing it once on me."_

"_What did you do?" Gwen asked with wide eyes. She knew how scary her mother was when she got angry and knew something like that would definitely put her over the edge. _

"_I cornered him in the nearby alley when my shift was over and demanded to know how and why he did it." She replied nonchalantly. "He managed to escape. But after that he kept coming back to my work and said he would only tell it I agreed to go on a date with him. After months of persuasion and nonstop nagging I finally agreed. And it's been love ever since." She finished. _

"_Oh..." Was all Gwen had to say with a confused look on her face. She didn't imagine it happening like that. She imagined something a little more... Romantic?_

_Rosie chuckled at her daughters reaction and continued walking. _

"_Ugh, finally!" Gwen Exclaimed once the park came into view. Now running ahead, Gwen stopped in the middle of the street when she heard her mom yell, "Gwen! What did I say about running in the street?" "Mom, there's no one here. The street is perfectly clear!" Gwen yelled back while turning her back to her mother._

"_GWEN!" What is her mother panicking about? There's nothing here._

_And that's when she saw it. The blue car turning the corner. Towards her. Not even ten feet away. She couldn't move. She couldn't breath. All she could do was stare and look death straight in the eyes as it moved towards her at a deadly speed. She didn't see her mother running to her. She didn't feel the violent push as her mother shoved her behind her own body. She only saw death. The bone chilling moment that meant the end of existence. _

_But not her own as she originally thought. _

_No. Not hers. _

_She saw her mothers._

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><p><em>Ba-thump. Ba-thump. Ba-thump. <em>That's all Gwendolyn could hear as she woke with a start. It has been a while since she last had that nightmare. She knew pondering on her mother last night was a bad idea, but she couldn't help it.

Sighing and looking to the small clock on the night stand, she saw it was five am. Not exactly when she wanted to wake up. She was hoping to get at least a few more hours of sleep. _Well, no use trying now. _Once she was up, she was up and there was no going back.

"Damn." she muttered as she sat up. Standing with a yawn, she stretched and made her way over to her dresser and pulled on some jeans, a cream colored loose fitting t shirt and some warm socks before grabbing her wand and heading across the hall to her bathroom. Looking in the mirror once again, she saw what she thought to be a zombie before sarcastically muttering, "Oh yeah, that's me." Rolling her eyes she applied some foundation and concealer to make herself look somewhat alive before muttering some simple charms to make the makeup last all day long, a handy trick she picked up from Clara.

After finishing up her usual morning routine she headed back to her room to double check everything before dragging her trunk down the stairs an setting it in front of the door. By then the clock only said five thirty and Gwen has no idea what to do with her self. So she cleaned, then re organized the bookshelf, then mopped all the floors and so on and so forth. This is the routine that Gwen has started for self ever since the battle. Wake up absurdly early, then clean obsessively and compulsively until the real day begun and she had to pretend that she was sane. It was sad, but it worked and kept her thoughts occupied while she was alone. She was in the middle of organizing the food in the fridge when she heard heavy footsteps coming down the stairs. Her father entered the kitchen with a sleepy look on his face which turned into confusion when he saw Gwen in the fridge.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Ummmmm..." This was the first time he has caught her during one of her morning compulsive cleaning sessions and she didn't know what to say. "Cooking?" She tried.

"At seven in the morning? Since when do get up this early?"

_'Since all summer...' _"Since today. I thought I would get up early so I'm not late again." She responded with a nervous chuckle which he returned.

"Oh, Okay. So, what are you making?"

"Blueberry pancakes." She blurted on the spot. "Yep, blueberry pancakes." '_Do we have all the ingredients.' _She thought, turning back to the fridge.

"Well holler up when they're done 'kay? I'm gonna go get ready for work." He said with a smile.

"'Kay." She said back and got to work mixing and pouring. Fifteen minutes later the pancakes were ready.

"Dad! Come eat!" She yelled.

He followed her yell two minuted later, fully dressed in his aruors robes.

"Thank you, Gwennie." He said, then proceeded to scarf down the pancakes that she has set on the table for him.

"You running late again?" She asked with an amused look.

"Yeah, the office decided to call me in early today."

"Oh, Okay." She sighed.

"I'm sorry I can't come with you. I really wish I could." He said gently, looking at her from across the table.

"It's fine." She replied with a small smile. "I know how important your job is. Especially nowadays. Have you caught anyone yet?" She asked to change the subject.

"No, not yet. We caught most of the death eaters after the battle, but there are still some on the run. Although we are hot on the Carrow twins trail."

"That's good. Just be careful, 'kay?" She added. She didn't want to loose anymore loved ones and she knew how the Carrow twins could be. She was one of their victims during muggle studies more than a few times.

"I always am." He said with a smile as he got up. Gwen rolled her eyes again. "Liar." She mumbled into his chest as he warmly embraced her. He always acted fist that thought later. She inherited that trait in a way.

"You have a good year, you hear me?" He asked sternly. "Don't get into too much trouble. Get good grades, and don't do anything stupid." He commanded sternly.

"I hear you." She responded quietly. "I love you."

"I love you too" After giving one lats squeeze, he pulled away, gave her a warm smile, and apparated to his work.

Sighing sadly and looking at the clock, she saw that it was only eight fifteen.

Great. Just great.

She was alone again.

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><p>Love It? Hate It? I need to know! So please review telling me what you think. Feed back keeps me going and I can't write with out it. I would really appreciate it. :) And even if you don't, thanks anyway for reading. :)<p> 


	4. Unexpected Appearances

**A/N: **Hey. :) I am so sorry for the delay in my chapters! Life has been pretty difficult lately and I have been feeling very unmotivated. So please read and review to tell me how I am doing! I could really use some motivation!

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><p>"<em>What the hell am I doing?" <em>

That was the only really coherent thought going through Gwendolyn's head while standing between platforms nine and ten in the Kings Cross Station. Her other thoughts were jumbles of "_I can't do this." _and "_Dear Merlin girl! Get your shit together and run!" . _But her feet were ignoring her conflicted minds commands and stayed put. What really got her to run was the loud toll of the clock to her right saying that her train would be departing in five minutes.

With a startled jump she took a quick glance around before running, eyes closed, into the solid brick wall in front of her.

She didn't feel any sort of sensations while phasing through the wall, but she did feel the change in the atmosphere telling her that she was no longer in the presence of muggles. She stood there, frozen for several seconds while trying to release the breath she didn't know she was holding which turned out to be very difficult. She feared what she might see when she opened her eyes. What unwanted memories would come flooding back. But she was once again startled out of her depressive musings when a very loud and excited voice called out her name.

"Gweennnnn!" Was all she heard before she was nearly tackled to the ground from her right . She opened her eyes widely to be greeted by a view of a messy blonde bob and shining blue eyes.

"Clara!" Gwen exclaimed. "I can't breathe!" She was trying to wrestle her way out of her best friends suffocating grip, but that just make Clara grip her all the tighter.

"You haven't seen me all summer and that's all you have to say? I have to admit Gwen, I'm hurt!" Clara mocked, while dramatically bringing one of her hands to rest on her heart and keeping the other still wrapped around Gwen. Gwen just laughed softly and hugged Clara back.

Gwen hadn't realized how much she missed her best friend. She hadn't changed much during the summer. She was a bit tanner than usual, but who wasn't during the summer. Her hair was a bit shorter, now ending at her shoulders rather than her shoulder blades and she was still extremely gorgeous. Gwen couldn't help but feel jealous of her form time to time. Clara was willowy and tall standing at 5'7 while she was curvy and short at 5'2. But she loved her anyway and couldn't think of any better person to be her surrogate sister.

After a few seconds they separated and Clara started talking and leading Gwen to the compartment that she saved for them.

"You were almost late again." Clara teased while helping Gwen push her large trunk onto the rack above her seat.

"And the sky is blue, and the grass is green. Really Clara, that is nothing new." Gwen replied with a grunt, successfully heaving her giant trunk onto the rack.

"Well then, what is new?" Clara asked while passing Kai, Gwen's barn owl over to her.

"Nothing." She answered honestly while cooing her beloved pet owl. She felt a little more saddened while thinking about how much she had digressed since the battle. She was doing so much better since her mothers death and was finally starting to live again, but it was all taken away once again in the form of another death.

Before she could be pulled back into her black hole of depression she quickly put her fake happy facade back on and tried to convincingly show her best friend that she was as happy as she was the previous year.

"What about you? How was the trip to France?" She asked, trying to bring the subject off of her.

"Oh my god Gwen, it was amazing!" And for the next hour Clara gushed about the wondrous taste of french food and how amazing french guys were in bed. Gwen was pretty sure Clara's parents would be going mad if they heard some of the things she did behind their backs.

Gwen continued listen intently to get her mind off certain things, nodded and awwwwed at the right places and rolled her eyes whenever she used a rather colorful string of profanities in a sentence. Gwen would be lying if she said that she never swore, but she has nothing on Clara.

Is wasn't until her stomach growled loudly that Gwen became aware how hungry she was. After all she hadn't eaten since her unplanned impromptu pancake bake that morning.

"Well I'm getting something to eat." She announced before getting up with her small coin bag.

"Get me something too will ya?" The blonde asked as she was leaving. "I'll pay you back."

"No need."

After ordering many different of fruity candies and jellies for Clara and a tremendous amount of assorted chocolates and chews for herself, Gwen was making her way back to her compartment. She would've made it there a lot sooner if she was paying attention to where she was going instead of digging in the bag grab a chocolate frog and bumping into someone.

"Oh shit! I'm sorry!" She exclaimed. She bent down and quickly picked her dropped bag of sweets. After making sure nothing has spilled she looked up to see the face of the very tall person she has bumped into and apologize one again for her ditziness and language. But when she met his eyes she was too shocked to speak. She didn't expect to bump into him. _His_ best friend. She just stood there, staring into his seemingly empty gray eyes.

Empty, like hers.

"Its fine." Draco Malfoy said in a soft emotionless voice. He quickly handed her the chocolate frog that he caught and maneuvered himself around her, walking quickly into his own empty compartment.

Making her way back to her own compartment, she quickly tossed Clara her candies and absently started to munch on her own chocolate frog.

"What took you so long?" Clara asked the confused girl in between bites of her jelly slugs.

"Long line." She replied quietly, still pondering the unexpected appearance of Draco Malfoy.

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><p>So here is chapter four. I know this one is a bit shorter than my previous chapters, but I have already started on the next chapter and it should be up soon! :D And Gwen is not in love with Draco all of a sudden! One of my greatest pet peeves is an author having her main character have one glance at some guy and all of a sudden they are head over heels. She is just simply curious.<p>

Please tell me what you thought of this one! Did you like it? Did I get anything wrong? Let me know. :)

Oh and since I almost forgot: I don't own anything except my oc's!

-IAmTheStars


	5. Life's a Bitch

**A/N: **Another update in the same weekend! That is a record. :) This chapter is in a different p.o.v. so I hope you enjoy! :D

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><p>Draco Malfoy had heard many sayings and philosophies of life. There was the old "Live life to the fullest." and "Living life without love is not living at all.", But there was only one that he could come to agree with.<p>

Life's a bitch, then you die.

But after living a life with an unloving father, misjudgments, war and death, who wouldn't? Only two things ever really made him happy in his life and now one of those things were gone. His best friend, Blaise Zabini. And he was just as close to loosing the second one as well. His mother had not yet recovered from the absence of his now imprisoned father and couldn't seem to stop drowning her sorrows in firewhisky. And then there was the regret. The awful guilt he always felt when he relieved those moments of weakness and stupidity during the war. He knew some of it wasn't his fault. He knew he was forced to get the dark mark and to work for a murderer. But after a while he simply gave up on fighting. So he let them give it to him anyway.

And now, after all that, he was going back to Hogwarts for an eighth year. He was going to try and move on while everything else in his life seemed at a stand still. Sitting in his empty compartment on the Hogwarts Express he once again thought about what a bad idea this could be. He would be all alone with no one on his side. People will probably hate Slytherins more than ever now, most particularly him. But he need a distraction from the horrid turn his home life and mother had taken. So what better way to do that than with an entire years worth of missed education and schoolwork?

He wished he could help his mother, but she seemed so far beyond reach now. She hadn't even acknowledged him when he announced his plans to go back to school and her distance was slowly breaking him even more.

Draco hadn't even realized that he has started tearing up until he felt a few treacherous tears sliding down his pale cheeks. Letting in a shaky breath, he quickly made his way out of his compartment and rushed to the nearest bathroom, silently thanking no one in particular when the corridors of the train were empty.

He managed to close the door just in time to release the relentless tears that had been fighting their way out since he woke up that morning. He hated crying, but this time it just couldn't be helped. He cried for his mother and Blaise, his broken home, the unforgiving hate everyone seemed to hold against him, and the fact that he had started crying in the first place.

After a few minutes of fighting off the tears and returning his breathing to normal he walked over to the sink and splashed water on his face before looking to his reflection in the mirror above. He looked okay despite his circumstances. He still dressed well, wearing a black button up dress shirt, though the first few top buttons were unbuttoned, and some matching pants. He no longer combed back his hair, now just letting the platinum strands fall across his forehead. His skin was still pale and his eyes still a dull gray. Looking into them he muttered a few simple sentences.

"My name is Draco Malfoy. I am eighteen years old. The war is over. I am no longer a death eater. I am going back to school. My mother will be better. I will be better."

He didn't believe most of them, but those few words are what mostly kept him sane throughout the summer. He always found himself needing reassurance that things were going to get better, even if he considered those reassurances a lie.

"Bullshit." He muttered, calling his own bluff before rushing out of the bathroom. In his brisk pace he failed to stop himself before nearly tackling a small girl to the ground, catching a chocolate frog that had fallen from her hand.

"Oh, shit! I'm sorry!"

The girls sudden appearance and startled him, but what startled him even more was was the profanity coming from her mouth. Sure he swore all the time, but he had never heard a girl so young say something like that. In his experience, swearing was something they grew into around third year, and she was way too small to be that old. But when she looked up he found to his great astonishment that she was actually a young woman. A very small one from what he could tell as she only came to his chest, but she couldn't have been a year or two younger than him. Her features were soft, but very mature and told him that she has experienced a lot at her young age. _"But haven't we all?"_ He wondered.

She looked as if she were about to say something to him, but her words seemed caught in her throat. Her face looked shocked that he was in her presence and her strange eyes were wide. As vibrant as they were, her eyes also seemed dull at the same time. Like they hadn't seen happiness in the longest time.

Of course he kept all of his expressions in check and didn't let any of his own thoughts show. He had always been good at that.

"It's fine." He said to her softly, fearing that if he spoke any louder his voice could crack and expose his tearful behavior. Quickly placing the chocolate frog in her hand, he moved past her and into his compartment, leaving the small girl alone.

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><p>"RAVENCLAW!"<p>

Draco was violently pulled out of his reverie by the sorting hats booming voice. He was sitting in a lonely corner at the Slytherin table pondering the miracle that had been his ability to make it to the great hall of Hogwarts without being killed by the other students. But having dodged countless hexes and endured multiple cruel names such as "Death eater!" and "Murderer!", he had made it relatively unscathed. He didn't like it, but he also didn't expect any different.

The feast went by painfully slow and uneventfully. No other slytherins from his year has come back, so he was all alone and had no one to talk to. In fact, it seemed as if the entire student body had been cut in half, most particularly the slytherins. Others would occasionally fling some food at him, but thanks to the wards he cast around himself and the sharp rebukes from the teachers he was wasn't hit. All he could do in the meantime was slowly eat his meager servings and ignore the whispers about him.

When the feast finally ended, he patiently waited in the back of the room to wait as Prof- no- Headmaster Mcgonagall instructed him.

"Mr. Malfoy." She greeted once she freed himself from the crowd of students.

"Headmaster." He responded respectfully with a nod of his head.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked with a troubled look. He could see that she was concerned for him and couldn't help but feel a little touched by it, but he need to do this.

His only response was another nod.

With a sharp nod back she then proceeded to show him to his new room. They climbed up some stairs and walked down a few hallways until the stopped in front of portrait on the fourth floor with all four house mascots painted on it in a golden frame.

"The password is Black Pepper Imps. Dumbledore picked it out." She explained when an amusing look of confusion crossed his face.

The portrait door opened and they stepped into a small but comfortable living area decorated in colors of green and gold. There were a few seats and a couch facing a lit fireplace to his right and a open door leading to what appeared to be a bathroom to his right. On the wall in front of him there was a large desk. To his slight amusement, Draco found that he liked it. He hadn't liked anything in quite a while.

"The bedroom is through the door over there," she pointed to a door near the desk, "and your things have already been brought in. Here is your time table." She handed it to him and he quickly looked it over before looking at her.

"Thank's."

"If you have any questions, just let me know." She said, looking him in the eyes quickly before leaving him alone.

Feeling exhausted, Draco made his way to the bedroom, hardly looking at the interior before taking off his clothes and collapsing in the large bed in nothing but his boxers, before shutting his eyes and falling into a dreamless sleep.

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><p>Minerva Mcgonagall worried about Draco Malfoy. She didn't trust him as first, but soon came to realize that he was simply misunderstood. She saw the way his father treated him. It reminded her of the way her own father treated her. He was the reason she turned out so stern and uptight. She always wanted to please him, but she never could. But at least she had her mother. And now with no father and an inactive mother she could only imagine how lost he must have felt.<p>

She can see the guilt and regret he feels form the war and past actions and can only hope that he can find a reason to keep moving on. She knew he never wanted to become what his father made him and now has no one to console him. She could only hope that coming back to this school will heal him. But after seeing the dead look in his eyes, she also feared that he was may be past healing.

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><p><strong>AN2: **So here it is. :) I decided last minute to add Mcgonagall's p.o.v. Please tell me what you think about it. Please leave a review! I could really use them!

-IAmTheStars


	6. Time is a Silly Thing

**A/N: **Soooooooooooooo... Yeah, I have no excuses this time. :/ I am just a horrible updater. Sorry about that... I hope you like it? :)

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><p>After 3 weeks of being back at school Gwen decided that time is a silly and stupid thing. It moved swiftly through the night, leaving her feeling like she had not slept at all. Yet it dragged endlessly during the day, especially when her patience wore thin. She hated seeing all of the places she would meet him. Like the fourth floor broom closet that was hardly ever used and the broom closet on the third. She hated looking across the great hall to the slytherin table hoping to catch his eye, if only for a second, and see that his spot was empty or being used by someone that was not him. But the worst of all was charms, which used to be her favorite class. She hated looking to her right and seeing the seat empty. That was where was "forced" to sit and secretly hold hands with her. Now whenever she sat there and sit on her right hand to keep from reaching over and feeling the immense disappointment when it touched nothing but air.<p>

But despite all of the pain time seemed to bring her then, Gwen felt that she was getting better. Maybe time really was all it took, even if it could be a painfully slow and dreadful. The sudden flashbacks didn't come as often and her facade became easier to hold. It was slightly easier to smile and she even laughed naturally a few times when Clara cracked a joke. She was feeling a little more like herself, though there was still a constant undercurrent of pain that never really went away.

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><p>"You look bored." Clara observed while sitting at the end of Gwen's bed, copying her potions answers.<p>

Gwen, who was laying down on her stomach, couldn't help but sigh at her friend. Stating the obvious always seemed to be one of her greatest talents.

"No shit, Sherlock." Gwen muttered into her pillow. It was a phrase she commonly told Clara when she said things like that.

"You know, you never told me who this Sherlock guy is. Why haven't I heard of him?"

"Of course you haven't heard of him." Gwen sighed. That answer got Clara thinking.

"Ah Ha! I bet it's your secret boyfriend. I knew it! Now I have to meet him!" Clara exclaimed excitedly while jumping up and down on the bed.

Gwen turned her face back into the pillow while swallowing back threatening tears. She didn't expect Clara to bring him up. Gathering her small amount of courage she turned onto her back while quietly muttering, "Sherlock is not my boyfriend. Besides, there is no more secret boyfriend. That ended at the end of last school year."

That stopped Clara mid jump. Landing rather ungracefully next to Gwen, the blonde gave a shocked expression while a startled "What?" escaped her lips. "Oh Gwen, I am so sorry! I knew how much he meant to you." Pulling Gwen up into a hug, Clara cradled her when she saw that a few tears had escaped her eyes.

"Will you tell me who he is now? I need to go find him and kick his ass."

"Not now, Clara. Maybe in the future, but not now, kay?"

Clara sighed, but relented when she saw the pain in her friends eyes. "Kay. Promise you'll tell me though."

"I promise." Gwen replied honestly.

"..."

"..."

"... Sooooooo... Who is he?"

"Clara, I just said-!"

"No! Not that! I mean Sherlock!" Clara said with an exasperated laugh.

"Oh. He's just a famous fictional detective in the muggle world." Gwen answered plainly.

"Oh." Clara responded, looking rather disappointed.

"What did you expect?"

"Not that."

The sound of the door opening interrupted Gwen's next statement as Josie Monroe and Romilda Vane entered the room.

"Oh, you two are here." Josie said when she spotted them with her bright blue eyes.

"That's funny, I was just about to say the same thing." Clara replied sarcastically while while smiling and receiving a scoff from Romilda.

Gwen once again sighed and rolled her eyes. She couldn't stand those two and they obviously returned those feelings. She couldn't stand Josie's high and mighty attitude and Romilda's obsessiveness. Gwen nearly died during fifth year when Romilda wouldn't shut up about Harry Potter being the chosen one and her constant scheming plans to seduce and woo him. Thinking of Ginny Weasley winning him never failed to bring a smile to her face. _"Speaking of which..."_

"Where's Ginny?" she asked out of the blue.

"Right here. " A very windblown looking and sounding Ginny walked into the room with a broom in her one hand and muddy quitdditch gear in the other, causing Josie to gag.

Hearing the noise Ginny turned towards her and dryly said, "Oh, you two are here."

This caused Clara to burst out laughing and Gwen even let out a small chuckle.

"What?" Ginny asked, confused while the other two girls stomped out of the room.

Still giggling, Clara informed Ginny on what just happened while Gwen thought about her fellow Gryffindor. Ginny never really belonged to either group of friends. She was always with the golden trio and never spent much time in their dorm. But since the trio never came back to Hogwarts she has been spending more time with her dorm mates and Gwen found that she liked her company.

After laughing at the recent turn of events, Ginny made her way to her bed and collapsed, exhausted.

"You look tired." Clara observed.

"No shit, Sherlock."

"Who's Sherlock?" Ginny asked.

And Gwen, once again, rolled her eyes and smashed her face into her pillow.

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><p><strong>AN:** I know the last couple chapters have been shorter but I promise they will get longer! Just give me some time! Oh, and reviews are nice too. :)

p.s. Don't forget to check out my photobucket! The link is on my profile. :)


	7. Seating Arrangements

**A/N: **BAM! 2 updates on one weekend! Woo Hoo! :D And ChelseyJ, thank you so much for your review. Its what motivated me to write this chapter and I hope you enjoy it! :)

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><p>"Gwennnnn..."<p>

"Mphirgghhhhh..."

"Gwennnnn..."

"Ugh... Nooooo..."

"GWEN!"

"WHAT?" Gwen snapped, bolting upright in her bed.

"Morning sunshine!" Clara greeted her with a too cheery smile.

Gwen replied with the most chilling glare she was capable if, which did nothing to falter Clara's growing smile. She never understood how someone could be so cheery in the morning. Clara had always been a morning person while she on the other hand might as well be a mindless zombie around that time.

"I hate you." Gwen muttered as she made her way out of her bed. It made her even more angry to see that Clara was already dressed and ready for the day. Gwen took her time getting ready since Clara had awoken her absurdly early (as always), and only about one fourth of her brain was fully functional at the moment.

"Where are the others?" Gwen asked after noticing they were the only girls there.

"Ginny had an early quidditch practice and I don't know where Bitch Face and Malfoy 2 is."

Gwen chuckled in response. Clara had given them those nicknames in second year due to their moods and Josie's white blonde hair, which they both believed was dyed despite Josie's insistence that it was natural. But whenever they looked closely they could see the dark brown at her roots every once in a while.

"Come on, I'm starving." Clara complained.

"Kay, I'm ready."

As they made their way to the great hall Clara filled the corridors with mindless chatter while Gwen was only half listening, keeping her eyes trained in the floor and trying to ignore reminders of _him_. Thankfully Clara didn't notice.

They were one of the first to reach the first hall save for a few Ravenclaws having an early study session and one lone Slytherin. Gwen noticed that Draco Malfoy often came to breakfast early, probably trying to avoid the constant pranks and harsh names that others put on him. Realizing that she was staring, she quickly looked away before he noticed.

"Hey." Ginny said, making her presence known and sitting across from them.

"Hey," Clara responded enthusiastically, "How was practice?"

And Gwen once again turned her brain off the mindless chatter for the second time that morning.

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><p>"Hello, class!" Professor Slughorn welcomed. All he received was some grunts from the Gryffindors and some smirks from the Slytherins.<p>

Gwen was currently seated in her assigned seat in the back next to Clara, head on the table, and hoping her last class of the day would be over so she could take a nap. But is seemed time was tormenting her again.

"Today we are going to start a special project. We are going to be making the Brillantezza Pozione," Slughorn continued to explain with a happy grin on his face, "or when translated from Italian, the the Brilliance Potion. It was invented by a famous Italian wizard by the name of Aldo Benito. He was a very ambitious wizard who yearned to know everything there was to know in the world, so he brewed a potion to do just that, even if only for a small amount of time. The potion allows your mind to fully comprehend everything surrounding you and learn at a much more rapid pace. But if taken too often your mind will be overwhelmed and will shut down forever and you would be in a vegetated state for the rest of your life.

"This potion does take a month and half to brew and will be done so an groups of two."

At that announcement Clara excitedly turned to Gwen and started animatedly gesturing that they work together with a huge grin on her face.

"The winning pair will not have to take my end of year potions exams and will automatically pass this class." Clara's grin continued to grow and Gwen even smiled.

"And here are the assigned pairs."

And all grins were now gone.

Promptly ignoring all groans and complaints, Professor Slughorn pulled out piece of parchment and proceeded to call out names.

Clara let out a frustrated sigh and Gwen went back to pouting.

"Ginny Weasley and Romilda Vane"

"Oh, poor Ginny." Clara sympathized and Gwen nodded in agreement.

"...Clara Connor and Trevor Parr..."

Clara sighed sadly and gave Gwen's hand a quick squeeze before making her way to a very disgruntled looking Slytherin. Gwen then decided to tune out her Teacher until she heard her name called.

"...and Johanna Landon..."

"Gwendolyn Storm and Draco Malfoy."

Gwen's heart stopped beating, then started back up again an double time. _"No... No no no no no... Not him..." _She literally stopped breathing when he slowly rose up from his seat and made his way over to her.

Greeting her with a small nod, she squeaked out a small "Hi." Before attempting to distract herself with taking notes of everything they would need. She couldn't believe her stupid, absent luck. Of course she would be paired with his best friend. Did he know about them? Was he angry with her? Did he blame her like she blamed herself? She unconsciously grabbed at her shirt, feeling through the fabric for the ring.

"I'll get the cauldron ready," he said out of the blue, effectively startling her and causing her to jump slightly. He looked at her strangely before busying himself his task. She took that strange look as a good sign._"Oh, thank god, he doesn't know."_

Shaking slightly, Gwen stood up and made her way over to the store cupboard while continuing to reason with her self. _"Of course he doesn't know! We promised each other we wouldn't tell anyone until the war was over. Should I tell him? No... That's not a good idea... But he was his best friend... But he was a death eater! What if he tries to kill me?... He wouldn't. He was forced to become one, Remember?... Yeah, but he was still an ass!"_

That was true. Despite all the times _he_ reassured her, she never really trusted Draco Malfoy. She saw how he would treat others and she hated bullies. But he did seem nicer this year. No, nicer wasn't the word at all. Less mean? Closer, but not quite. Just... depressed. Out of his element. Sad. _"Of course he is sad! He lose his best friend." _Despite his snobbish attitude, she knew he considered Blaise a brother and that Blaise felt the same way..

Back at the table she found him waiting patiently for her. They got to work with minimal contact, only talking when they needed something. She knew he was very talented when it came to potions and it was one of her best subjects (it reminded her of cooking), So she wasn't surprised when they were the first to finish with no complications. She was actually a little proud of their work. But that pride quickly slipped away then she saw that they had 15 minutes left of class. She hated awkward silences enough, but with him there they just became a zillion times worse.

After twiddling her thumbs, tapping her fingers, swinging her legs on the too tall stool and doing anything else she could do to distract her self from her current predicament, the bell finally rang. Quickly grabbing her notes and jumping from her stool, she was nearly out of the room before his voice stopped her.

"Storm!"

Jumping and spinning around she saw him walking towards her before stopping on front of her. _"I forgot how tall he was."_ She thought absently while looking up at his 6' frame.

"You Grabbed the wrong notes." He told her.

Looking down at the notes she had grabbed she saw unfamiliar handwriting and green ink.

"Oh, sorry." She quickly apologized. Handing him his notes, he swiftly traded them for hers.

"Thanks." She said quietly.

He once again nodded before making his way past her and out of the room.

Looking after him, she didn't notice Clara making her way towards her before she looped her arm through one of Gwen's and dramatically drawl, "Life is so miserable!"

"_Tell me about it."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** How did you guys like it? Please tell me in a review! They mean so much to me and keep me motivated. :)


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